You Can Be My Hero
by Tatsurou-san
Summary: Sometimes being a Hero doesn't need a power. All it takes is being in the right place and the right time with the right person. For Izuku Midoriya, that was his lowest point. For Himiko Toga, it was hers too. Right place, right time, right person...everything changes.
1. Chapter 1

Izuku Midoriya sighed softly as he walked down the road, head down and not really looking where he was going. Just the previous day, the doctor had diagnosed him as 'Quirkless', stating unequivocally that he would never develop a power, shattering his dreams of growing up to be a Pro Hero like All Might. Just the night before, he'd asked his mother if he could still be a Pro Hero like All Might without a Quirk...only for her to hug him tight, crying and apologizing. Just that day, the entire school had learned he was Quirkless, and his oldest friend had turned on him, dubbing him with a nickname to represent his status in his eyes.

Deku. Worthless.

As his sight briefly wavered from tears, he stumbled and banged the back of his hand against a tree, wincing at the impact. Katsuki had pushed him down during recess, and he'd scraped the back of his hand. The school nurse had put a wrap on it, but he could see the red spot that said it was bleeding.

_ This is the worst… _ Izuku thought sadly as he stared at the spot of red seeping through the thin bandage. _ I'm useless! I can't even go for a walk without being injured. Why did I have to be Quirkless? I just want to help people! _ Feeling his emotions reach a fever pitch, he screamed as best he could.

"I wish I had/didn't have a Quirk!"

Izuku blinked in shock. Someone else had screamed very nearby. Bracing himself, he leaned around the tree...and saw a girl about his age staring back. She had very pale skin, yellow eyes with slit pupils, blonde hair done in twin pigtails, and a rather cute face...though her eyes were somewhat reddened from crying. As he stared at her, she stared back at him. "Who...who are you?" she finally asked nervously.

"I...Izuku," Izuku offered awkwardly. "Who are you?"

"...Himiko…"

They both stared at each other for a time. Izuku didn't really know how to talk to people well, and after what had happened recently, he wasn't too eager to open up. However, what he heard her shout and the red in her eyes made him curious. Before he could figure out what to say, she spoke first. "You...don't have a Quirk?" she asked softly.

"No...I don't…" Izuku admitted sadly.

"Lucky…" Himiko responded sadly. "Wish I didn't…"

"Why?" Izuku asked in confusion. "You could be a famous hero-"

"No I can't," she interrupted, her head down and tears in her eyes again. "My Quirk is bad, and I'm not supposed to use it…"

"...bad?" Izuku asked in surprise. "How can a Quirk be bad?" As much as he'd looked forward to discovering his Quirk and achieving his dream of being a Hero, he'd never imagined that a Quirk could be a _ bad _ thing.

"I dunno," Himiko said softly. "But that's what Mom and Dad and the counselor say…"

"Well, what is it?" Izuku asked curiously.

"I dunno," Himiko admitted ruefully.

"But...if you don't know, how can you know it's bad…?" Izuku's voice trailed off as he noticed Himiko's eyes locked on the red spot on his bandage. "H...Himiko?"

She blinked in surprise and jerked back. "I'm sorry!" she apologized fervently. "I'm trying not to be bad! I shouldn't-" Her words cut off in sobs as she covered her eyes.

Izuku looked from her to his bandage. "You have a blood Quirk?" he asked in surprise. "Like Vlad King?"

"I dunno, maybe?" Himiko admitted softly, her voice on the verge of tears as she shook. "I just...I want blood so bad, but I shouldn't…"

Izuku immediately unwrapped the bandage, holding out his scraped hand, where a bit of blood was leaking through. "Here," he offered helpfully. "You can have some if you need it."

Himiko's eyes locked on the blood for a time, but forced her eyes to his face. "But...I shouldn't…"

"Mitsu-ba-chan says Quirk cravings are your Quirk's way of telling your body what it needs to be healthy," Izuku insisted firmly. "So if your Quirk says you need blood, then you should have some."

Himiko stared at him for a time, then slowly lowered her face to his hand. Taking it in both of hers, she took a deep sniff. The shakes of her body slowly subsided, and she opened her mouth. Moving forward slowly and carefully, she pressed her tongue to the back of his hand and gently dragged it across the scrape, taking just one drop of blood at first. Her entire body slowly relaxed as she swallowed it, gently licking up another drop, and then another. After a few more licks, she pulled her head back. Her skin didn't look quite as pale as it had, and the tension she'd seemed to be under was gone. "T-thank you," she stammered awkwardly, a warm smile on her face. Glancing down at his hand, her eyes widened. "Your scrape…?"

Looking down, he saw that where the scrape had burst open from impact with the tree had sealed itself over, and the scrape itself looked better. "Guess they call it 'licking your wounds' for a reason?" he offered helpfully. "Maybe something about your Quirk and your saliva…?"

Izuku jumped as he heard a loud noise elsewhere in the park. Himiko quickly pulled her hands back. "My bodyguard," she whimpered sadly. "I gotta get going before he sees me." She turned to go, then hesitated. "Will...will I see you again?"

"I'll come here tomorrow!" he offered eagerly, his mind already racing as he thought about what he'd seen of her Quirk already.

Himiko smiled warmly, her eyes soft. "See you then!" With that, she dashed off.

Izuku turned and quickly headed for home, a wide grin on his face. He'd made a new friend, and he'd helped someone! Maybe he didn't need to have a Quirk to be a Hero after all!


	2. Chapter 2

The next day after school Izuku rushed back out to the park where he'd encountered Himiko. He tried to get there as close to when he was there the previous day, but as he hadn't been wearing a watch then or now he wasn't entirely certain if he got it right. At the same time, he had no idea where Himiko would expect to meet him here, or if she actually would...

As he unwittingly leaned against the same tree as he'd scraped his hand on the previous day, idly rubbing a crape on his knee Katsuki had inflicted him with where the scab had broken during his run, he looked around for Himiko. "Is...is she here?" he wondered quietly. "I mean, she said she'd be here tomorrow yesterday and that's today, right?"

Pushing away from the tree, he glanced down at himself. His knee wasn't the only part showing wear and tear from Bakugo's treatment. His clothes were scuffed up, his shoelaces burned, and his hair looked more like a crow's nest than Katsuki's usually did. "She...will come, won't she?" he asked himself. Looking around, he saw no sign of her. Listening hard, he heard no sign of anyone else in the park.

Izuku let his head sink forward. "She's not coming, is she?" he mumbled under his breath, tears at the corners of his eyes as he began to circle the tree. "She has a _bodyguard_. She's super well off. No way a girl as good at that would waste her time with someone Quirkless...what was I thinking...

"I'm such an idiot!"

* * *

Himiko panted for breath as she managed to evade her bodyguard long enough to get to the park. Hiding under the tree that had the scent of Izuku's blood in the roots, she steadied herself as she prepared for what was going to happen. Izuku would be there soon, and then she could talk to someone without having to be 'a good girl'. She hoped he wasn't badly hurt...but she needed blood, she could feel the tension in her muscles that had vanished when Izuku'd let her taste his...she remembered how scared he'd looked at her...

"He's not gonna come," she whimpered as she started to circle the tree. "Why would he? I...I'm treating him like food in my thoughts! And I mentioned my bodyguard! He's bound to be terrified to be caught with me even if he isn't scared of what I'll do..." She sniffled and rubbed at her eyes and nose with her sleeve. "And how did I find where we met? Smelling his blood...no wonder he doesn't wanna come...

"I'm such an idiot!"

* * *

Izuku and Himiko both froze as they each heard the other shouting. Uncertain if they were hearing things, they each leaned to their right around the tree, trying to see who might be on the other side. Seeing nothing, each leaned around to the left side, also seeing nothing. Pulling back, they each thought about the situation for a moment, then leaned to the left again in anticipation of breaking a trope, but saw nothing. Confused, each rapped their knuckles against the tree in hope of someone responding to what was heard, only for their own knocking to drown out the sound of the other's to their ears as they unwittingly rapped the exact same pattern. Hoping to sneak up on whatever _might_ be on the other side of the tree, they each put their backs to it and slowly edged around it to their right, watching carefully for any sign of a person. "Next time I'm bringing a bell," they both muttered under their breaths as they continued to discover nothing.

Himiko then froze, sniffing the air as she caught a whiff of fresh blood. At the sound of her sniffing, Izuku came back around the tree the other way, and they caught sight of each other, still with their backs to the tree. They stared at each other for a time, noticing the signs that the other had been crying, and the panic fading away...and they both flopped to the ground in helpless giggles as they realized what had just happened.

"Should...should I look left first?" Izuku managed to gasp out between giggles, only to wince as his knee banged the tree as he tried to sit up.

"You're hurt!" Himiko gasped out in worry. "Is...is it my fault?"

"No," Izuku hastened to assure her as he gripped his knee from either side. "Just...from school..." Looking up, he noticed how pale she was. "Craving again?"

Unwilling to actually admit it, Himiko nodded silently.

"Then have some!" Izuku offered helpfully, trying to extend his knee and only managing to fall onto his back. "...glad the grass is soft..." he mumbled morosely.

Unable to help herself, Himiko burst into further giggles. "You stay put, I'll move!" she offered as she turned to get to his knee, only to accidentally catch his other leg, falling onto him and sending the both of them tumbling down the small hill the tree was atop. Each let out a startled yipe as they tumbled, coming to a halt at the bottom with Himiko on her back atop Izuku's belly. They glanced worriedly at each other...only to burst into giggles again. Izuku helpfully lifted his knee, and Himiko leaned over and began to lick up the blood.

Izuku watched carefully as best he could as she got what she needed. Each drop added a shade of pink to her skin, her eyes seeming less sallow in her skull. Even her hair started to look a little less stringy. "You okay?" he asked worriedly as she finished.

"...better," she allowed as she pulled back, checking to make sure his knee was healed.

"Do you need more?" he asked helpfully, quickly checking himself over for anywhere else he had scabs he could pick off for her.

Himiko quickly shook her head. "It's...it's not necessary..." she managed to get out.

The pair sat there for a time, the awkward silence slowly descending as they each struggled for something to say. After a time, they each tried a gambit. "So what do boys/girls do for fun?" Hearing the simultaneous questions, they stared at each other for a time before bursting into giggles.

Hearing a rustle nearby. Himiko leapt to her feet. "Oh, shoot!" she pouted. "He's here already?"

"I'll bring cards next time?" Izuku offered helpfully.

"Okay!" Himiko agreed as they both took off running back towards their respective homes.

From the bushes, eyes watched carefully before vanishing.


End file.
